Officials look at changes downtown as Western Boulevard grows

By LINDELL KAY - Daily News Staff

Published: Sunday, December 30, 2012 at 11:45 AM.

In the 1960s, businesses flourished along Lejeune Boulevard, stretching between downtown and the base’s main gate. The 1970s saw the opening of the Brynn Marr Shopping Center on Western Boulevard, shifting growth in that direction. The Jacksonville Mall opened in the early 1980s, anchoring Western Boulevard as the commercial district of Jacksonville for the following decades, all according to archived news reports and interviews with long-time residents and city officials.

“This sort of thing usually takes a century,” Hargett said. “We’ve seen it happen a number of times in our lifetime in Jacksonville.”

The natural evolution of business growth in Jacksonville is encapsulated in Lowe’s Home Improvement. The building supply company opened on Ellis Boulevard in the 1980s. Around 10 years later, the store moved to Western Boulevard. Another decade saw the store move again, to its current location on Western. A second Lowe’s was opened in Jacksonville on Yopp Road in 2008, said Ryan King, the planning and permitting administrator for the City of Jacksonville.

As Lowe’s moved each time, different businesses filled the spaces left behind. A local building supply store opened at the original Ellis Boulevard location. Best Buy, Dick’s Sporting Goods and now the new Big Lots, which relocated from New River Shopping Center, occupy the site at and around its first Western Boulevard location.

Like many other stores, there just wouldn’t have been room for a Lowe’s downtown.

“We believe it’s our responsibility to promote economic growth,” Woodruff said. “You do that by providing services conducive to growth: water and sewer, good roads and safe environments.”

The city has revamped its central permitting office, which helps all businesses open and operate easier. The updates include: Changing building-to-road set-backs from 50 feet to 35 feet; increasing the building height limit from 35 feet to 75 feet; and streamlining building codes to provide more flexibility.

When Belk came to town, it opened on New Bridge Street where City Hall is now. The fashion giant stayed there until the Jacksonville Mall opened in the early 1980s.

Until Camp Lejeune opened in the early-1940s, Jacksonville had only 800 residents. After Lejeune, the town swelled. Commerce grew continually outward from downtown. New businesses were attracted to the New River Shopping Center, which opened in the mid-1950s, the second of its kind in the state at the time.

“When New River Shopping Center opened with a Big Star grocery store, it was all the rage,” Hargett said, adding that shoppers tend to gravitate toward new shopping areas.

In the 1960s, businesses flourished along Lejeune Boulevard, stretching between downtown and the base’s main gate. The 1970s saw the opening of the Brynn Marr Shopping Center on Western Boulevard, shifting growth in that direction. The Jacksonville Mall opened in the early 1980s, anchoring Western Boulevard as the commercial district of Jacksonville for the following decades, all according to archived news reports and interviews with long-time residents and city officials.

“This sort of thing usually takes a century,” Hargett said. “We’ve seen it happen a number of times in our lifetime in Jacksonville.”

The natural evolution of business growth in Jacksonville is encapsulated in Lowe’s Home Improvement. The building supply company opened on Ellis Boulevard in the 1980s. Around 10 years later, the store moved to Western Boulevard. Another decade saw the store move again, to its current location on Western. A second Lowe’s was opened in Jacksonville on Yopp Road in 2008, said Ryan King, the planning and permitting administrator for the City of Jacksonville.

As Lowe’s moved each time, different businesses filled the spaces left behind. A local building supply store opened at the original Ellis Boulevard location. Best Buy, Dick’s Sporting Goods and now the new Big Lots, which relocated from New River Shopping Center, occupy the site at and around its first Western Boulevard location.

Like many other stores, there just wouldn’t have been room for a Lowe’s downtown.

“We believe it’s our responsibility to promote economic growth,” Woodruff said. “You do that by providing services conducive to growth: water and sewer, good roads and safe environments.”

The city has revamped its central permitting office, which helps all businesses open and operate easier. The updates include: Changing building-to-road set-backs from 50 feet to 35 feet; increasing the building height limit from 35 feet to 75 feet; and streamlining building codes to provide more flexibility.

King said city planners realized the codes were too restrictive when it took three months for a business owner to get permits to move to an adjacent building.

That business owner, Renee Worthington of Courthouse Caffe, said it was incredibly difficult to get a special use permit when she moved seven years ago.

“Now it’s parking,” she said. “There is no parking near the restaurant and people don’t want to walk.”

Woodruff said he is working with businesses on the limited parking issue.

King said Worthington has been patient during the permitting process.

“Renee had to go through so much red tape just to move next door,” he said.

Many of those layers of the permitting are now gone, allowing entrepreneurs a much easier road to opening their businesses.

Jacksonville developer Martin Aragona Jr. has capitalized on the new business-friendly environment by planning new restaurants on Court Street. He said he thinks downtown has a lot to offer residents.

City planner Abigail Barman said other avenues are being explored as well.

“We are looking at offering tax breaks to business owners who clean up their businesses,” she said.

One example is the Fisherman’s Wharf on Marine Boulevard at the New River. City officials are working to help owners figure out how to rehab or remove the building, Barman said.

Across the street from the Wharf is the future site of a new city park and boating ramp, which replaced dilapidated buildings.

“Those buildings once served the community, but eventually needed to be torn down,” Woodruff said.

It’s all part of the natural evolution of city commerce, he said.

As an area grows, certain businesses take notice. Cheddar’s, Carolina Ale House, and the planned LongHorn Steakhouse are prime examples, Woodruff said.

But those businesses need space. That’s why large stores would not have opened in downtown Jacksonville regardless of the growth along Western Boulevard.

“Toy R Us or Kohl’s would never locate downtown,” Woodruff said. “Not here, not anywhere.”

The trend is for businesses to open away from downtown, Woodruff said.

“It’s all about traffic numbers,” King said, adding the Marine and Western intersection is one of the busiest in North Carolina.

It's also important to understand that not every empty storefront signifies an economic downturn. The space Piggly Wiggly once occupied in the New River Shopping Center has been empty for several years. But it’s not for lack of business. As a way to limit competition, Food Lion is leasing the empty store until 2015 to prevent a different grocery chain from moving into the area, Hargett said.

There’s no doubt Western Boulevard continues to see growth with the area becoming more upscale, adding both a Hilton and Marriott, which are scheduled to open soon.

“None of these businesses would come to Jacksonville until the population was right,” Woodruff said. “Both of the hotels have around 4,000-square feet of meeting rooms.”

Another attraction to the area is the new Carmike Cinemas at Western and Henderson Drive, also near a new off ramp for the U.S. 17 bypass. The new theater features a BigD premium theater, Carmike’s version of IMAX, according to plans.

“With the theater you will see more restaurants,” Woodruff said.

A nearby 45,000-square foot building under construction is the planned site for Panera Bread.

The owners of Tony’s, a restaurant on Western Boulevard that closed recently, said they have already sold the building and a new restaurant will be opening at the location soon.

Platinum Corral owner Billy Sewell said the Marine Boulevard Golden Corral was rebuilt to hold 500 seats because growth along Western Boulevard supports a larger restaurant. The Piney Green Golden Corral was closed permanently for the opposite reason. But while the Golden Corral will not be reopening, a new restaurant is coming to the building, according to city planners.

There are new stores popping up all around Jacksonville. In the works right now is a Dollar General on Gum Branch Road near Raintree Road, according to public records.

Across town, Yopp Road has come full circle as a business hub. In the 1960s, the area was home to mechanic shops, restaurants and a drive-in theater. Now Walmart, Lowe’s, Dollar Tree and many more stores have brought business back to the area.

“We will begin to see upscale restaurants in the Yopp Road corridor,” Woodruff said.

The IHOP that opened in the Yopp Road area last year has become one of the most profitable locations in the franchise chain, employees confirmed.

But Western Boulevard and Yopp Road may already be old news to developers. Once Piney Green Road is widened to a five-lane thoroughfare, the area surrounding the Piney Green and Marine Boulevard intersection will see tremendous growth, officials said.

“Growth in a new area begins slowly and gains momentum,” Woodruff said. “Ten years from now Western will be built out and new growth will follow Highway 17 north, which will be the future retail corridor.”

Mat Raymond Jr., the principal owner of Sanders Ford, said he agrees with Woodruff’s assessment.

“Sanders Ford has been in its current location since 1964,” he said. “When talk of building the bypass in front of my dealership starting getting serious, I sold a piece of property on Western Boulevard and reinvested the proceeds into a parcel along 17 past the other dealerships.”

Raymond said he bought the property as an investment and a hedge. He prefers his Lejeune Boulevard location, but will be ready for expansion on U.S. 17 when the time comes.

“We considered building out there, but I like where we are right now. We’re close to the base and the Main Gate,” he said. “I know when someone drives onto my lot they are not coming to buy a loaf of bread.”

New homes are also being planned for the U.S. 17 and Piney Green Road area. Local developers have land ready for 1,000 homes to be built off Piney Green Road near White Oak High School, according to plans on file with the city’s permitting office.

That’s not to say city officials have given up on downtown. A committee to research downtown development has been created with two Jacksonville City Council members and two Onslow County Commissioners. City Councilmen Jerome Willingham and Mayor Pro Tem Mike Lazzara and County Commissioner Barbara Ikner and Vice Chairman Paul Buchanan have been appointed to the committee.

“The future of downtown is government and office buildings with supplemental shops and restaurants,” Woodruff said.

Contact Daily News Senior Reporter Lindell Kay at 910-219-8455 or lindell.kay@jdnews.com. Follow him on Twitter and friend him on Facebook @ 1lindell.